Table 2.
Number of metabolites detected by chemical class, and the number with statistically significant associations with BMI
| Chemical class | Total number of metabolites |
Number (and %) of metabolites associated with BMI (a=0.05/317) |
|---|---|---|
| All | 317 | 37 (12%) |
| Amino acids1 | 83 | 19 (23%) |
| Carbohydrates | 17 | 3 (18%) |
| Peptides | 11 | 2 (18%) |
| Lipids | 138 | 12 (9%) |
| Xenobiotics | 36 | 1 (3%) |
| Cofactors and vitamins | 16 | 0 (0%) |
| Energy metabolites | 7 | 0 (0%) |
| Nucleotide metabolites | 9 | 0 (0%) |
1
The category of amino acids includes both standard amino acids, i.e. the 20 amino acids that are directly encoded by the universal genetic code and are precursors to proteins, as well as non-standard amino acids, i.e. amino acids that are not incorporated into proteins or not directly encoded for by the universal genetic code.